Page 82 of The Wild Zone

I proceeded to tell them everything I’d learned from eavesdropping on Argus and the satyrs (not much), and then actually talking to Argus (still not much), and then comparing notes with Clarisse (a fair amount, with the bonus of polearm-fighting to the death…well, near-death).

Harper shook his head. “So…wait. This doesn’t make sense. You’re saying that for hundreds of years Chiron has been sprinkling dangerous magic items around the Wild Zone like Easter eggs? Why?”

“I don’t know,” I admitted. “But I don’t think he ever intended them to be found again. Something happened. Something changed.”

I remembered the fissure in the woods. What had the hooded man called it? Collateral damage. A mere scratch. He’d warned I would have to go deeper into the Wild Zone to find answers.

“But there are legit, dangerous magical artifacts in the Wild Zone,” I said. “And something is guarding them.”

“Except your ring isn’t magic,” Zuri said. “We saw you put it on. Nothing happened.”

“Yeah, about that…” With a deep breath, I took off my gloves, slid the ring on my finger, and twisted the band.

Zuri dropped her jaw.

Harper dropped a plate.

Benny dropped a curse word that probably would’ve shocked his cows back home.

I glanced down to make sure the ring hadn’t developed the ability to make only my clothes invisible or something. That would be just my luck. But nope, all of me was gone.

A feeling of smug satisfaction washed over me. The other newbies were staring in awe at the place they’d just seen me, as if they couldn’t believe I was capable of doing something so amazing. Idiots. Maybe if I dunked their heads in lava…

“Gah!” I yanked the ring off my finger.

Even though they’d literally seen me disappear, everyone jumped.

“I knew it!” Harper punched the air with his fist. “It’s the One Ring!”

I didn’t share his enthusiasm. “It certainly feels cursed like that. Whenever I put it on, these evil impulses smash through my skull and terrorize my brain.”

Zuri’s nostrils flared. “Okay, that’s a horrifying way to describe intrusive thoughts.”

I leaned wearily against the wall. “I learn a lot of synonyms doing crosswords.”

Harper almost stroked his chin, but then remembered he was wearing steaming hazmat gloves. “Well, since we can’t take the ring to Mordor, maybe you had the right idea before, to drop it in lava.”

I shook my head. “I don’t think we should quite yet. The ring could still be useful.”

“Sure,” said Zuri. “If it doesn’t make you power-bomb every woodland creature we come across.”

I blinked at her. “First of all, my ring rage seems to be limited to people.”

Or trees, I thought. Or hallucinations.

But I decided not to bring that up.

“Second,” I said, “if this ring is part of some monster’s treasure stash, the monster might want it back.”

The others grew still.

“You’re talking about using yourself as bait,” Benny said.

“Absolutely not,” Harper said.

“It might work,” Zuri said.

We all stared at her.